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Histórias Brilhantes: 10 HQs de Alan Moore
MAIS BRILHANTE DO QUE VOCÊ IMAGINA… Uma coleção de histórias em quadrinhos curtas de Alan Moore (Watchmen, Do Inferno). De experimentos ousados, passando por tentativas iniciais de seus tópicos favoritos, até autocríticas de seus trabalhos mais antigos, esta coletânea de grande alcance é um vislumbre essencial das reluzentes histórias curtas de Moore. Cada história é desenhada por alguns dos melhores artistas dos quadrinhos, indo de feras do mainstream, como Stephen Bissette (Monstro do Pântano, Tyrant), Rick Veitch (Monstro do Pântano, Bratpack) e John Totleben (Miracleman) até os iconoclastas do underground, como Mark Beyer (RAW) e Peter Bagge (Hate, Woman Rebel: The Margaret Sanger Story). O crítico de HQs Marc Sobel provê comentários perspicazes e contexto para cada uma das histórias.
172 pages, Hardcover
First published August 9, 2016
8 people are currently reading
274 people want to read
About the author
Alan Moore
1,578 books21.7k followersAlan Moore is an English writer most famous for his influential work in comics, including the acclaimed graphic novels Watchmen, V for Vendetta and From Hell. He has also written a novel, Voice of the Fire, and performs "workings" (one-off performance art/spoken word pieces) with The Moon and Serpent Grand Egyptian Theatre of Marvels, some of which have been released on CD.
As a comics writer, Moore is notable for being one of the first writers to apply literary and formalist sensibilities to the mainstream of the medium. As well as including challenging subject matter and adult themes, he brings a wide range of influences to his work, from the literary–authors such as William S. Burroughs, Thomas Pynchon, Robert Anton Wilson and Iain Sinclair; New Wave science fiction writers such as Michael Moorcock; horror writers such as Clive Barker; to the cinematic–filmmakers such as Nicolas Roeg. Influences within comics include Will Eisner, Harvey Kurtzman, Jack Kirby and Bryan Talbot.
As a comics writer, Moore is notable for being one of the first writers to apply literary and formalist sensibilities to the mainstream of the medium. As well as including challenging subject matter and adult themes, he brings a wide range of influences to his work, from the literary–authors such as William S. Burroughs, Thomas Pynchon, Robert Anton Wilson and Iain Sinclair; New Wave science fiction writers such as Michael Moorcock; horror writers such as Clive Barker; to the cinematic–filmmakers such as Nicolas Roeg. Influences within comics include Will Eisner, Harvey Kurtzman, Jack Kirby and Bryan Talbot.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 42 reviews
December 30, 2016
This is a collection of Alan Moore short stories (written between 1986 and 2003) with copious commentary from Marc Sobel. The stories are basically all from anthologies and would be pretty hard to find today; at the very least, Sobel should be feted for putting all of these in one volume. (I'm a pretty big Moore fanboy, and I think I had only read four of the ten.) The volume includes "In Pictopia", the Moore ur-story where fictional beings live in a shared universe, "This Is Information", a response to 9/11 with a huge dose of Moore's focus on symbols and recurrence, "The Mirror of Love", Moore's poem on the history of repression and freedom for the LBGT community, and "I Keep Coming Back", an autobiographical coda to From Hell and my favorite discovery.
One note on production values: perhaps it was only my copy, but the pages reprinting "In Pictopia" were quite dark, making at least one page hard to read. (You can find a better version in The Best Comics of the Decade, 1980-1990 Volume One.) I didn't see any issues with the other stories, and the first tale (a piece from Epic from Moore and Veitch) is just plain gorgeous.
Now, over half the book is commentary, and it's a mixed bag. Sobel does his best work in the foreword, where he emphasizes how Moore's early work on short stories prepped him for his longer pieces. These days, a new writer in the genre can spring forth with a graphic novel, but that wasn't an option for Moore, and his regular work on short pieces shaped how he approached longer works. A chapter from Moore is often a work unto itself, with its own tone and aesthetic. (Think of the "Fearful Symmetry" issue of Watchmen or Gull's tour of London in From Hell.)
But the commentary for each story often falls flat. Sobel spends much of his time on the publishing history behind each story (something a Moore fan would probably already know) and then summarizes the story you just read. There are a few attempts to provide copious annotations (a la Jess Nevins), but they occur mostly in the footnotes, often to perplexing effect. For example, in reviewing "Tapestries", an antiwar piece from a veteran's viewpoint, Sobel leaves Kurtzman's war work for E.C. in the footnotes, when making that connection more explicit could tie Moore's work to earlier comics skeptical of warfare. And, in the same essay, Sobel shows a picture of Brought to Light (Moore's volume on CIA propaganda), but only mentions it in the footnotes. Overall, I had hoped for a more idiosyncratic critical voice than Sobel provided.
If you are a Moore fanperson, then you either already own this or should pick it up. If you're not but are interested in Moore, I'd suggest looking at his longer works first.
One note on production values: perhaps it was only my copy, but the pages reprinting "In Pictopia" were quite dark, making at least one page hard to read. (You can find a better version in The Best Comics of the Decade, 1980-1990 Volume One.) I didn't see any issues with the other stories, and the first tale (a piece from Epic from Moore and Veitch) is just plain gorgeous.
Now, over half the book is commentary, and it's a mixed bag. Sobel does his best work in the foreword, where he emphasizes how Moore's early work on short stories prepped him for his longer pieces. These days, a new writer in the genre can spring forth with a graphic novel, but that wasn't an option for Moore, and his regular work on short pieces shaped how he approached longer works. A chapter from Moore is often a work unto itself, with its own tone and aesthetic. (Think of the "Fearful Symmetry" issue of Watchmen or Gull's tour of London in From Hell.)
But the commentary for each story often falls flat. Sobel spends much of his time on the publishing history behind each story (something a Moore fan would probably already know) and then summarizes the story you just read. There are a few attempts to provide copious annotations (a la Jess Nevins), but they occur mostly in the footnotes, often to perplexing effect. For example, in reviewing "Tapestries", an antiwar piece from a veteran's viewpoint, Sobel leaves Kurtzman's war work for E.C. in the footnotes, when making that connection more explicit could tie Moore's work to earlier comics skeptical of warfare. And, in the same essay, Sobel shows a picture of Brought to Light (Moore's volume on CIA propaganda), but only mentions it in the footnotes. Overall, I had hoped for a more idiosyncratic critical voice than Sobel provided.
If you are a Moore fanperson, then you either already own this or should pick it up. If you're not but are interested in Moore, I'd suggest looking at his longer works first.
Read
February 6, 2018At the most basic level, it’s brilliant that these short stories by Alan Moore are now easier to obtain; I don’t even have all of them myself, and I’m more prepared than most to go digging for old anthology comics. Anything by a writer of Moore’s stature is of at least passing interest, and most of the stuff here is at least good, and sometimes much more than that. However. For one thing, the reproduction isn’t always what it could be (the great ‘In Pictopia’, which I’m lucky enough to own on glossy paper in one of the tribute books from a few years back, is almost illegible here). And Sobel’s essays on the pieces, while often containing interesting information, have an annoying tendency towards exceptionalism when it comes to the gloss. For instance, he tries to claim that 'Love Doesn’t Last Forever’ is distinct from Moore’s Future Shocks because "its underlying premise and characters are grounded in the real world". What, so ‘The Reversible Man’, in which an everyday life seen in reverse offers new perspective on the fundamental human condition of ageing, love and loss, isn’t grounded in the real world? You can certainly say that ‘Love Doesn’t Last Forever’’s treatment of sex wouldn’t have been possible in 2000AD at the time, and don’t get me wrong, it’s a fine story – but broad-brush belittling Moore’s previous shorts to prop it up is bullshit. Similarly, there's ‘Tapestries’, which makes the fairly well-worn territory of Vietnam regrets feel fresh and shocking again with its non-linear structure. Now, you could note the way in which Moore has long been fascinated by a perspective outside our perception of time – back from Jerusalem, through the Aleph in Swamp Thing, to ‘The Reversible Man’ again. But no, instead Sobel talks about how the anthology in which it first appeared, Real War Stories, was new in being a war comic in which true stories were drawn from the accounts of real veterans. Has Sobel not heard of Sam Glanzman, or is he knowingly erasing him to make Moore look more revolutionary? Because it’s not like Moore needs that sort of help. And surely it’s a more interesting story anyway to note that in reality an anti-war war comic wasn’t new, but a current of the times; in Britain Charley’s War was already a fixture of the comics landscape, and in the States The Nam was just getting underway. So don’t give us some spurious version of Alan Moore changing everything by sheer fabulous fiat – talk about how his version differs from the others doing similar work at the same time. That’s a far better way of examining his craft and vision, not to mention being true.
And so it goes on. 'The Mirror of Love' remains an utterly gorgeous survey of millennia of queer history (though if I'm honest, I've never felt the illustrations added that much to it, largely because the unimpressive flaccidity of the intersex angels adds a bathetic note). And while the "vain, malignant hordes" are with us still, it's salutary to be reminded of how far we've come even in the three decades since it was released. Here Sobel mostly contents himself with footnoting, which would be fine if several of them weren't glaringly incorrect - apparently Gertrude Stein and Natalie Clifford Barney were in Paris at the dawn of the nineteenth century, rather than the twentieth, and Allen Ginsberg becomes Alan instead. Oh, and let's not forget "the origins of transgenderism in the lavish theatrical productions of William Shakespeare". I mean, anyone who's been to the Globe could do a lot of quibbling with that 'lavish' even before we get to the real shocker there - but I suppose if there were never any anti-war comics before Moore then sure, why not, maybe there was nobody trans before Shakespeare either? Fuck's sake.
But let's try to concentrate on the Moore not the Sobel, eh? He's the draw, and he gets more pages, and he's just better. Sure, some of the stories are pretty minor - 'Come On Down', say. This is from Taboo, where From Hell also began, but it's not on the same level - a fairly obvious story in which a woman's gradually drawn in to a horrific game show, anything it may have had to say about our not always healthy relationship with screens and fame has been long superseded by Cinema Purgatorio (again, a comparison Sobel fails to note. Sorry, but you had one job...). 'The Bowing Machine' is a slight fable about Japan, though interesting for the art - one thinks of Moore as having worked with a wide variety of artists, but then one sees Mark Beyer's almost abstract style here and realises just how far it is from the look(s) one expects in an Alan Moore comic. 'I Keep Coming Back' we know is amazing, and why it isn't already included in From Hell, or a least its Companion, continues to puzzle me. 'The Hasty Smear of my Smile', drawn by Peter Bagge, is the life story of the Kool-Aid Man, and you can guess the punchline as soon as you've grasped the premise. Sobel, again, manages to completely miss the point, noting all the obvious things it takes the piss out of without apparently realising that it also feels an awful lot like Moore taking the piss out of his own technique of giving a third dimension to corporate characters who it could be argued didn't need or deserve one. Wrapping up the collection are two Gebbie collaborations - the 9/11 response 'This Is Information', whose hope seemed forlorn at the time and doubly so now, and the lost Cobweb story which gives the collection its title. The latter is extremely pretty, and has some nice visual gags, but can offer only the barest summary of the bonkers life of occultist and rocket scientist John Whiteside Parsons. Regarding the former, Sobel manages one last mistake, by suggesting that the tarot deck has only 22 cards, when as any fule kno that's just the major arcana. Oddly, the book then concludes with endnotes which correct at least one of the errors in the essays proper, so perhaps it was just a rushed edit to blame? But if the book couldn't be bothered to go back and amend the earlier bits, then nor can this review.
And so it goes on. 'The Mirror of Love' remains an utterly gorgeous survey of millennia of queer history (though if I'm honest, I've never felt the illustrations added that much to it, largely because the unimpressive flaccidity of the intersex angels adds a bathetic note). And while the "vain, malignant hordes" are with us still, it's salutary to be reminded of how far we've come even in the three decades since it was released. Here Sobel mostly contents himself with footnoting, which would be fine if several of them weren't glaringly incorrect - apparently Gertrude Stein and Natalie Clifford Barney were in Paris at the dawn of the nineteenth century, rather than the twentieth, and Allen Ginsberg becomes Alan instead. Oh, and let's not forget "the origins of transgenderism in the lavish theatrical productions of William Shakespeare". I mean, anyone who's been to the Globe could do a lot of quibbling with that 'lavish' even before we get to the real shocker there - but I suppose if there were never any anti-war comics before Moore then sure, why not, maybe there was nobody trans before Shakespeare either? Fuck's sake.
But let's try to concentrate on the Moore not the Sobel, eh? He's the draw, and he gets more pages, and he's just better. Sure, some of the stories are pretty minor - 'Come On Down', say. This is from Taboo, where From Hell also began, but it's not on the same level - a fairly obvious story in which a woman's gradually drawn in to a horrific game show, anything it may have had to say about our not always healthy relationship with screens and fame has been long superseded by Cinema Purgatorio (again, a comparison Sobel fails to note. Sorry, but you had one job...). 'The Bowing Machine' is a slight fable about Japan, though interesting for the art - one thinks of Moore as having worked with a wide variety of artists, but then one sees Mark Beyer's almost abstract style here and realises just how far it is from the look(s) one expects in an Alan Moore comic. 'I Keep Coming Back' we know is amazing, and why it isn't already included in From Hell, or a least its Companion, continues to puzzle me. 'The Hasty Smear of my Smile', drawn by Peter Bagge, is the life story of the Kool-Aid Man, and you can guess the punchline as soon as you've grasped the premise. Sobel, again, manages to completely miss the point, noting all the obvious things it takes the piss out of without apparently realising that it also feels an awful lot like Moore taking the piss out of his own technique of giving a third dimension to corporate characters who it could be argued didn't need or deserve one. Wrapping up the collection are two Gebbie collaborations - the 9/11 response 'This Is Information', whose hope seemed forlorn at the time and doubly so now, and the lost Cobweb story which gives the collection its title. The latter is extremely pretty, and has some nice visual gags, but can offer only the barest summary of the bonkers life of occultist and rocket scientist John Whiteside Parsons. Regarding the former, Sobel manages one last mistake, by suggesting that the tarot deck has only 22 cards, when as any fule kno that's just the major arcana. Oddly, the book then concludes with endnotes which correct at least one of the errors in the essays proper, so perhaps it was just a rushed edit to blame? But if the book couldn't be bothered to go back and amend the earlier bits, then nor can this review.
May 18, 2017
A collection of short works by Alan Moore from 1986 to 2003. Some of these stories are hard to find elsewhere and show a range of storytelling from Twilight Zone style stories, to prose poems about same-sex love, to 9/11, to a short-but-thorough bio of an influential scientist and occultist. With detailed essays following each comic, and almost as many pages of footnotes, you can dive pretty deep into Moore's work and personal life; almost as much as a straight-up biography. Recommended for people interested in Moore or the comics industry.
April 19, 2017
Moore's usual stunningly good wordplay! One of his overarching ideas is the Word, logos, being the pinnacle of human technology, and he is a Master Logosician. No matter what you think of his curmudgeonliness (aw, c'mon, he's a big filthy scary lookin' teddy bear), his ranting against the mainstream comics industry that inspired his efforts that made him a star, or his magic, that man can write. He's one of the greatest writers to ever work in comics, and this is a fine sampling. My favorite stories are Love Doesn't Last Forever, Come on Down, The Mirror of Love, I Keep Coming Back, This is Information, and Brighter Than You Think, which doesn't mean the remaining four stories are lesser. They're each excellent, each innovative, clever with surprises, they just didn't grab me quite like the others.
I'd go more in depth, but no time! Perhaps later.
I'd go more in depth, but no time! Perhaps later.
Want to read
February 22, 2016Colección de ensayos sobre y de Alan Moore.
November 4, 2018
While it was fun to read the Moore stories, Sobel's essays spent too much time describing the plots of the stories we had just read.
January 25, 2024
The works were okay. The "critical essays" were a waste of my time.
March 8, 2019
Moore is so omnipresent in the comics world that it's easy to forget just how damn good he is, and it's nice to get a reminder every couple years. This is a nice collection of his work's rarer pockets, with intelligent - if fawning - criticism and, importantly, contextualization by Marc Sobel. I wish the colour quality on this printing was higher, but having these otherwise hard-to-find short works accessible is worth it regardless.
August 30, 2017
The short of it
This is a collection of 10 of Alan Moore's short work, loaded with pages of commentary after each story.
Why did I pick this up?
Alan Moore has been and continues to be the most important voice in the realm. I was drawn top this, because I was unaware that he had a history of short works like these, themselves being parts of anthologies, each hovering around 8 pages in length.
What did I think?
This really started of very strongly, and I loved the first half of the collection, but by the end I was left a bit unsatisfied. There is a wide range of emotional responses here, from shock to melancholy over the changes that Moore was responsible for in the comic industry, to curiosity over some of the historical journeys he took in some of the "non-fiction" pieces. This is really a mixed bag, and there are a few that are must-reads. I only wish that there were a few stronger works included here. Additionally, although the commentary was usually very informative and insightful, there was at least one example of Marc Sobel going deep into the subject of Moore's work, rather than the context of his work. This could easily have been 4-stars, but it just missed the mark for me.
If you are an Alan Moore fan, I would definitely recommend this book.
This is a collection of 10 of Alan Moore's short work, loaded with pages of commentary after each story.
Why did I pick this up?
Alan Moore has been and continues to be the most important voice in the realm. I was drawn top this, because I was unaware that he had a history of short works like these, themselves being parts of anthologies, each hovering around 8 pages in length.
What did I think?
This really started of very strongly, and I loved the first half of the collection, but by the end I was left a bit unsatisfied. There is a wide range of emotional responses here, from shock to melancholy over the changes that Moore was responsible for in the comic industry, to curiosity over some of the historical journeys he took in some of the "non-fiction" pieces. This is really a mixed bag, and there are a few that are must-reads. I only wish that there were a few stronger works included here. Additionally, although the commentary was usually very informative and insightful, there was at least one example of Marc Sobel going deep into the subject of Moore's work, rather than the context of his work. This could easily have been 4-stars, but it just missed the mark for me.
If you are an Alan Moore fan, I would definitely recommend this book.
December 6, 2016
This is a must-have and must-read for the fan of comics, social commentary, and Alan Moore. The book is worth it for the collection of long out-of-print stories alone (I understand a corrected reprint with adjusted coloring is forthcoming). It is fascinating to see Moore's voice and storytelling evolve over time. I also found that Sobel's accompanying essays were critical to my enjoyment and appreciation of the stories. The essays provide a detailed historical account of the social context and issues about which Moore was writing, as well as what was happening in Moore's life at the time which may explain certain aspects of each piece. It is difficult for us now to understand why homosexuality and/or the AIDS epidemic were huge taboos at the time, for example, and the essays help enormously in contextualizing and enriching the stories. He discusses the talented artists and their work with Moore, as well. The stories show a range of Moore's work from historical, social critique, personal, and purely humorous. An excellent addition for any collector of Moore's work, comics art, criticism, and/or powerful storytelling.
August 27, 2021
Each of these stories is a gem and there's not a weak spot among them.
December 5, 2023
I've read all of these before, but as a collection, this is astonishing in its accomplishment.
May 20, 2025
This book is Alan Moore at his best, and it is absolutely fantastic. It is a must-have if you like comics, and especially if Alan Moore is your kind of guy. The author doesn't treat you like stupid; Alan Moore understands that it's not sex and shock factor that makes the work adult, but nuance, multi-layering, and thoughtful themes.
Some strips were familiar to me beforehand, while others came as absolute revelations—like “The Hasty Smear of My Slime” or “I Keep Coming Back.” Beyond their artistic value, this book plays a crucial role in preserving these comic gems—works that might otherwise have dissolved into the dust and mildew of forgotten attics. And frankly, I don’t want to live in a world where they’re lost.
Every strip is supplemented by an essay by Marc Sobel, which includes context, historical background, and deconstruction, which really helps in understanding some of the nuances of the works. Although, he may indulge himself in needlessly retelling the comic we just read from time to time, I always felt like I learned something new afterwards.
The stain on experience for me is the quality of some pages. I thought it might be an isolated defect, but reviews often mention the same problem. It's not like it makes it unreadable, mind you, but it certainly takes you out of the experience. Although, it is important to note, it does not affect EVERY story. While 'In Pictopia' probably suffers the most, most of the strips are of quite good print quality, and some are near-perfect.
Overall, I'm really pleased with the purchase;while the shortcomings with the printing create a bump in the road, I keep coming back to it with a hasty smear of my smile.
Some strips were familiar to me beforehand, while others came as absolute revelations—like “The Hasty Smear of My Slime” or “I Keep Coming Back.” Beyond their artistic value, this book plays a crucial role in preserving these comic gems—works that might otherwise have dissolved into the dust and mildew of forgotten attics. And frankly, I don’t want to live in a world where they’re lost.
Every strip is supplemented by an essay by Marc Sobel, which includes context, historical background, and deconstruction, which really helps in understanding some of the nuances of the works. Although, he may indulge himself in needlessly retelling the comic we just read from time to time, I always felt like I learned something new afterwards.
The stain on experience for me is the quality of some pages. I thought it might be an isolated defect, but reviews often mention the same problem. It's not like it makes it unreadable, mind you, but it certainly takes you out of the experience. Although, it is important to note, it does not affect EVERY story. While 'In Pictopia' probably suffers the most, most of the strips are of quite good print quality, and some are near-perfect.
Overall, I'm really pleased with the purchase;while the shortcomings with the printing create a bump in the road, I keep coming back to it with a hasty smear of my smile.
July 11, 2020
Preciso confessar que o que me atraiu primeiramente para este quadrinho, Histórias Brilhantes: 10 histórias curtas de Alan Moore foi saber que ele continha a maravilhosa O Espelho do Amor. Esta vigorosa história faz um giro histórico pela história da homossexualidade do início da humanidade aos anos 1990. Mas descobrir as demais histórias que Histórias Brilhantes contém foi um deleite à parte. Desde a primeira história somos tragados pela genialidade de Alan Moore em algumas histórias mais acessíveis, como a história do Jarrão do Ki-Suco e outras mais herméticas como a da Máquina de Reverências. As artes também variam em sua atração, mas todas elas servindo para os propósitos narrativos de Moore, que traz diversas formas de se apresentar uma história em quadrinhos nestes trabalhos dele que vão dos anos 1970 a 2000. Preciso ressaltar também o soberbo trabalho de Marc Sobel tanto na organização destas histórias como em cada maravilhoso texto que vem para explicar o contexto e analisar cada história de Alan Moore. Ah se cada quadrinho que revisitasse histórias antigas fossem assim, teríamos mais pessoas versadas na história das HQs e , por conseguinte, da História com H maiúsculo. Nesse quesito, Histórias Brilhantes brilha com mais e mais força. O título original desta coletânea poderia ser traduzido como Mais Brilhantes do que Você Pensa (Brighter Than You Think) e realmente essa é a sensação que ficamos quando fechamos o livro: as histórias vão além de nossas expectativas.
July 1, 2023
I'm still not fully keyed into the world of graphic novels. I love the idea of them but - when I'm looking for my next read - I tend to steer into second hand shops. Do write me a comment below if you've ever been lucky enough to have seen a graphic novel in a charity shop! Because I haven’t.
Does that mean that people hold onto them? Is a graphic novel, therefore, more precious than a standard paperback in the minds of their owners? I think I get that. They do seem more special, somehow...
Who knows? But the fact remains, it limits their arrival at my TBR shelf. Only I think that is changing.
One place where you can always be sure to find them is abebooks.co.uk and that's exactly where I stumbled on this book.
Overall, this was a really exciting and interesting overview of Moore’s work. The partnerships between himself and the different artists are a lot more collaborative than I’d assumed. I like that. The story’s tone can be subtly influenced. Or it just adds a layer of crystallisation to the words to hammer home their intent.
The Critical Essays by Marc Sobel provide a really clear and insightful guide to each story. And each story is a snapshot of one of the most important storytellers of our age. I really get that now, from this book.
A great adventure into an unfamiliar genre.
Does that mean that people hold onto them? Is a graphic novel, therefore, more precious than a standard paperback in the minds of their owners? I think I get that. They do seem more special, somehow...
Who knows? But the fact remains, it limits their arrival at my TBR shelf. Only I think that is changing.
One place where you can always be sure to find them is abebooks.co.uk and that's exactly where I stumbled on this book.
Overall, this was a really exciting and interesting overview of Moore’s work. The partnerships between himself and the different artists are a lot more collaborative than I’d assumed. I like that. The story’s tone can be subtly influenced. Or it just adds a layer of crystallisation to the words to hammer home their intent.
The Critical Essays by Marc Sobel provide a really clear and insightful guide to each story. And each story is a snapshot of one of the most important storytellers of our age. I really get that now, from this book.
A great adventure into an unfamiliar genre.
March 10, 2018
Those who are familiar with Alan Moore’s mainstream works wont be disappointed by those very intelligent short stories. His influence in comics is undeniable: its hard not to think about Alan’s short story “In Pictopia” as a legacy from which, for example, Grant Morrison’s “The Coyote Gospel” (Animal Man) feels in debt.
His passion for liberal, mystical, non-conformists is very much required today and highly appreciated - see “Brighter than you think”, the mini-bio about John Parsons. We need more like this, we need more Alan Moore.
His passion for liberal, mystical, non-conformists is very much required today and highly appreciated - see “Brighter than you think”, the mini-bio about John Parsons. We need more like this, we need more Alan Moore.
November 30, 2022
Antologia interessante para conhecer alguns trabalhos do Alan Moore nunca antes publicados no Brasil - e até mesmo já indisponíveis nos países de origem atualmente.
Os comentários do Marc Sobel não se restringem somente ao roteiro do Alan Moore, destacando também a relevância/influência de todos os outros artistas/editores envolvidos. Também vale destacar as histórias de bastidores e do relacionamento do Alan Moore com as editoras envolvidas (e o seu rompimento com algumas) e o mercado de quadrinhos.
Os comentários do Marc Sobel não se restringem somente ao roteiro do Alan Moore, destacando também a relevância/influência de todos os outros artistas/editores envolvidos. Também vale destacar as histórias de bastidores e do relacionamento do Alan Moore com as editoras envolvidas (e o seu rompimento com algumas) e o mercado de quadrinhos.
June 4, 2017
“They added a cheap gift to the expensive product, and made the whole deal less attractive. Less is more in this case.”
Some of the short works are absolutely brilliant. Some are just "good", and the book would be stronger without them. But the brilliant stories are just such a pleasure to read that Brighter Than You Think is definitely the best graphic novel I've read this year.
Experimental and clever, Alan Moore shows again that he really knows how to write graphic novels.
Some of the short works are absolutely brilliant. Some are just "good", and the book would be stronger without them. But the brilliant stories are just such a pleasure to read that Brighter Than You Think is definitely the best graphic novel I've read this year.
Experimental and clever, Alan Moore shows again that he really knows how to write graphic novels.
December 5, 2021
Great collection for Moore fans.
Shorts ranked from favorite to least favorite
1. I Keep Coming Back
2. Love Doesn’t Last Forever
3. Tapestries
4. Come on Down
5. In Pictopia (the version in this book is an awful scan, I’m sure it would be higher if it was better reproduced here)
6. The Hasty Smear Of My Smile
7. The Mirror of Love
8. Brighter than you think
9. This is Information
10. The Bowing Machine
Shorts ranked from favorite to least favorite
1. I Keep Coming Back
2. Love Doesn’t Last Forever
3. Tapestries
4. Come on Down
5. In Pictopia (the version in this book is an awful scan, I’m sure it would be higher if it was better reproduced here)
6. The Hasty Smear Of My Smile
7. The Mirror of Love
8. Brighter than you think
9. This is Information
10. The Bowing Machine
August 1, 2022
Lots of times these type of books collect stuff you have read and say things that you already know. To my surprise, I have only come across two of these ten stories and some of the notes added to my understanding of the context of the work.
In that, I think this is a good piece for any folks that are kind of interested in Alan Moore but only know a few of his works or maybe just his more famous pieces.
In that, I think this is a good piece for any folks that are kind of interested in Alan Moore but only know a few of his works or maybe just his more famous pieces.
June 22, 2017
Fun read of a small selection of Moore's short stories. A lot of exploring of LGBTQ narratives which made it an appropriate read for Pride Month.
The essays by Sobel were interesting, but at times very academic. The parts about Moore and the top level inspiration was great. Some of the specific details got a bit too deep for my liking.
Well written and thoughtful compilation overall.
The essays by Sobel were interesting, but at times very academic. The parts about Moore and the top level inspiration was great. Some of the specific details got a bit too deep for my liking.
Well written and thoughtful compilation overall.
July 23, 2017
Even a little Moore is good, even if I don't feel like I've been missing anything by not having read these before. Maybe with the exception of The Hasty Smear of my Smile. The essays are occasionally insightful, even if largely they give a bit of historical background and then recapitulate the story.
October 31, 2017
Alan Moore is a magical, brilliant seer, commenting on so many social issues and contemporary events in such varied and interesting ways, this collection and its accompanying essays (which do add a little, but don't outshine the original stories) highlight the ways in which Moore was so gifted and interesting.
November 17, 2017
Alan Moore again showing that the comic medium is not only for superheroes. These stories have depth in them and tackle some of the pressing issues in our world today. I like "Tapestries" the best, for it shows that patriotism and dying for your country is not as glorious as the writers had made it out to be. It reminded my of Dulce et Decorum Est by Wilfred Owens.
Definitely worth the read.
Definitely worth the read.
March 20, 2020
Bear in mind this is pretty early in the pandemic so I have no idea if I would like this book more or less under normal circumstances. Also I didn't read any of the essays from Marc Sobel that followed each story. I often find that there isn't much to gain from reading an essay by someone who is essentially just a fan like myself. That being said it was a pretty good read overall.
March 30, 2021
An amazing read. Almost every way you look at "Brighter Than You Think" it's a classic collection of rare, strange, genre-breaking comics by a master of the form.
I would highly recommend this to anyone interested in graphic novels, comic books, history, or, simply enjoys the art of the short story. What this volume shows about Alan Moore is an artist with almost limitless power.
I would highly recommend this to anyone interested in graphic novels, comic books, history, or, simply enjoys the art of the short story. What this volume shows about Alan Moore is an artist with almost limitless power.
January 22, 2023
This was a lovely find at the used bookstore, Title Wave. I’m a big fan of Alan Moore’s shorts and singles, and tend to lose patience with things like Vendetta and Watchmen and Marc Sobel does a wonderful job adding deep context to the stories through the critical essays that accompany each. It’s a lovely format, and a thoroughly instructive read.
July 25, 2021
Um compilado de 10 brilhantes histórias curtas feitas por Alan Moore, com os temas que já conhecemos: indagações sobre a vida, política, paródias e muitas outras coisas, tudo com a escrita excelente de Moore e com talentosos desenhistas acompanhando.
November 26, 2022
Algumas histórias verdadeiramente incríveis, como tapeçarias e o espelho do amor, outras q puxam pra baixo a coletânea, como sempre ocorre. Muito bom o trabalho ao final dos capítulos de explicar o contexto que foi criada e publicada a história, junto da análise.
May 30, 2017
A lot of rare stories made extra engaging by the corresponding essays.
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